Many are stealing in from Colombia, entering the country through illegal crossings, without testing for the novel coronavirus. Maduro says they’re fueling a dangerous spike in cases in this uniquely vulnerable nation. “Those who cross [back home] illegally, you are killing your families,” Maduro said in a televised speech last week. “The Colombian virus has sneaked everywhere, and is killing good people.”
Venezuela’s U.S.-backed opposition says Maduro’s government is making a bad situation worse by penning new arrivals in ill-equipped quarantine centers, where opposition figures say the virus is spreading. The sides agree on at least one point. This South American nation, whose tattered health system, experts say, is among the least prepared in the world to cope with the pandemic, is now belatedly witnessing a long-feared coronavirus outbreak, with cases soaring and hospitals overwhelmed.